Helen Skelton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Helen Skelton
Skelton in 2011
Born	Helen Elizabeth Skelton (1983-07-19) 19 July 1983 (age 42) Carlisle, Cumbria, England
Occupation	Television presenter
Years active	1999–present
Employer	BBC ITV
Television	Blue Peter (2008–13) Countryfile (2008—present) Holiday Hit Squad (2013–2014) The Instant Gardener (2015—2016) Lorraine (2016–2017) Big Week At the Zoo (2019—present) Friday on the Farm (2020-)
Spouse(s)	Richie Myler ​ ​ (m. 2013; separated 2022)​
Children	3
Relatives	Gavin Skelton (brother)

Helen Elizabeth Skelton, born on July 19, 1983, is a well-known English television presenter. She often appears on BBC1's Morning Live.

She was a co-presenter on the popular BBC children's show Blue Peter from 2008 to 2013. Since 2014, she has been a presenter on Countryfile. Helen also co-presented two series of Holiday Hit Squad on BBC One. She also hosted The Instant Gardener, a daytime series.

Early Life and Education

Helen Skelton was born in Carlisle, Cumbria, England, on July 19, 1983. She grew up on a dairy farm in the village of Kirkby Thore. She went to the local primary school there. Later, she attended Appleby Grammar School.

Helen then studied journalism at the Cumbria Institute of the Arts. She earned a BA degree. While in college, she worked as an extra on TV shows like Coronation Street and Cutting It. Helen has mentioned that if she wasn't a broadcaster, she would have liked to be a teacher. Her brother, Gavin Skelton, was a professional footballer.

Helen Skelton's Career

Helen Skelton signing autographs in December 2010.

Starting in Media

After a short time working in public relations, Helen decided to focus on journalism. She worked in the newsroom at CFM Radio. She was also involved with different programmes at Border Television.

In 2005, she became a breakfast presenter on BBC Radio Cumbria. She was one of the youngest people to host a breakfast show on the BBC at that time. Later, she worked as a reporter and sometimes a presenter for the children's news programme Newsround. She also worked on Sportsround, which was a sports show for kids.

Television Work

Helen Skelton became a presenter on Blue Peter on August 28, 2008. She took over from Zoe Salmon and was the 33rd presenter for the show. In August 2013, she announced she was leaving Blue Peter. Radzi Chinyanganya replaced her. While on Blue Peter, Helen also worked on other projects. These often involved reporting from big events, like the Championships, Wimbledon.

After leaving Blue Peter, Helen started presenting live FA Women's Super League football matches for BT Sport. She also continued her reporting roles for the BBC. She has presented parts of Countryfile since 2008. She also hosted two series of Holiday Hit Squad in 2013 and 2014. In 2014 and 2015, she presented the London Marathon Highlights show for the BBC.

In December 2012, Helen took part in a Christmas special of Strictly Come Dancing on BBC One. Since 2015, she has co-presented the daytime BBC One series The Instant Gardener. In early 2016, she presented Tonight: Kids V Career.

Helen was a reporter for the BBC at the London 2012 Olympics. She also hosted coverage of the 2016 European Swimming Championships. She worked for the BBC at the 2016 Summer Olympics, presenting swimming coverage. In late 2016 and early 2017, Helen was a guest presenter for five editions of Lorraine on ITV. She also co-presented two episodes of Walks with My Dog in 2017. That same year, she returned to host swimming coverage for the BBC during the 2017 World Aquatics Championships.

Helen appeared on Celebrity Antiques Road Trip with her friend and former co-presenter Rebecca Adlington. From September 2022, Helen competed in the twentieth series of Strictly Come Dancing. She was partnered with professional dancer Gorka Marquez. She finished as a runner-up in the competition.

In 2023, Helen started voice-acting. She became the voice of a new character, farmer Annie Morris, in the children's animated series, Fireman Sam.

Writing Books

Helen Skelton's first novel, Amy Wild: Amazon Summer, was published in May 2015. Her autobiography, In My Stride, was published on October 12, 2023.

Radio Shows

Helen used to host a weekly show on BBC Radio 5 Live on Sundays. She also sometimes co-hosted BBC Radio 5 Live Drive Time. From August 2022 to August 2023, Helen presented BBC Radio 5 Live's morning show on Sundays. She left Radio 5 Live in August 2023.

Amazing Challenges

Wheelchair Dance

In December 2008, Helen Skelton won the Malta Open Dance Competition. Her partner was a 16-year-old wheelchair user. They beat 100 other dancers.

Ultra Marathons

In April 2009, Helen became only the second woman to finish the 78-mile Namibian ultra marathon. She completed the run in 23 hours and 45 minutes. This was just 15 minutes under the one-day time limit. She said it was a "gruelling experience" but also "amazing." Helen has also completed the London Marathon three times: in 2009, 2014, and 2019.

Kayaking the Amazon River

In early 2010, Helen kayaked the entire length of the River Amazon for Sport Relief 2010. She kayaked 2,010 miles by herself. She started in Nauta, Peru, on January 20 and finished in Almeirim, Brazil, on February 28.

She earned two entries in the Guinness World Records:

• The longest solo journey by kayak.
• The longest distance in a kayak in 24 hours by a woman.

Tightrope Walking

On February 28, 2011, Helen Skelton walked a 150-meter tightrope. It was between chimneys at Battersea Power Station, 66 meters above the ground. She did this to raise money for Comic Relief. Blue Peter made two special shows about her amazing walk.

Journey to the South Pole

In 2012, Helen raised more money for Sport Relief. She became the first person to reach the South Pole using a bicycle. The bike was specially made for her trip with 8-inch wide tires. She also used skis and a kite to help pull a sled with 82 kg of supplies.

Helen covered 329 miles by kite ski, 103 miles by bike, and 68 miles by cross-country ski. She also set a world record for the fastest 100 km by kite ski. She did it in seven hours and 28 minutes during her trip. Guinness World Records confirmed this achievement. Blue Peter also made five special episodes about this incredible journey.

Helen's Magnificent 7

In April 2013, Helen took on seven challenges for Comic Relief. She wanted to inspire Blue Peter viewers to support the charity. She called these challenges her "Magnificent 7." This name was a nod to the 1960 Western movie The Magnificent Seven. During these challenges, she also broke one world record.

Here are some of her challenges:

• Rugby Kick – she did not succeed.
• Performing In Two Shows In One Night – she succeeded.
• Flying With the Red Arrows – she succeeded.
• Photo Shoot – she succeeded.
• Rope Bridge – she succeeded.
• Longest Line of Bunting – she succeeded and set a World Record at the time.
• Coin Toss – she did not succeed.

Sport Relief Boxing

In March 2018, Helen Skelton took part in a celebrity boxing match. She defeated Camilla Thurlow after three 2-minute rounds. This event was part of the BBC's Sport Relief fundraising.

Personal Life

In December 2013, Helen Skelton married England national rugby league team player Richie Myler. Their first child, a boy, was born on June 19, 2015. In September 2015, they moved to France after Richie joined the Catalans Dragons club. Their second son was born in April 2017. Their third child, a daughter, was born on December 28, 2021.

Helen announced in April 2022 that she and Richie Myler were no longer together. He had left the family home.

Filmography

Television

Guest Appearances

• What's Cooking? (2013) – Guest
• Countdown (2013) – 'Dictionary Corner' guest
• The Chase: Celebrity Special (2013) – Contestant
• All Star Family Fortunes (2015) – Contestant
• Blue Peter (2015) – Guest
• The TV That Made Me (2015) – Subject
• Pointless Celebrities – Contestant
• Sunday Brunch (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019) – Guest
• The One Show (2023, 2025) – Guest

See Also

• List of Blue Peter presenters
• List of Strictly Come Dancing contestants